One of the problems with underground pipe sysstems is the difficulty of locating a leak in that system. For example, if the underground pipe system is for transferring water from one place to another, often times the only apparent visual indication of a leak is a certain wetness on the soil. Of course, depending upon how deep the piping is buried, this may not even be present. In any event, this fails precisely to locate the leak and necessitates digging to uncover the pipe by a "hit or miss method" until the precise point of the leak is located. This is not only time consuming, it is quite expensive for the labor involved.
In addition, it often happens that original records and drawings are destroyed and thus the precise path of a pipe or conduit, the two terms being utilized herein interchangeably, is no longer known. This of course makes it extremely difficult to ever attempt to locate a leak.
It is an object of this invention to provide a method and apparatus which has the capability of pinpointing precisely the location of a leak in a pipe or a conduit.
Yet another object of this invention is to provide a method and apparatus which will pinpoint leaks precisely without employing extremely complex and costly equipment.
Another object of this invention is to provide a pipeline and leak locater which is simple to operate, portable, and can be conveniently used with a minimum of required skill by the operator.
The method and means of accomplishing the objects of this invention will become apparent from the following detailed description of the invention.